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Plano City Council approved a special election for voters to consider taxes to be implemented into the Dallas Stars arena planned at The Shops at Willow Bend at a meeting Aug. 10.
The gist
Voters in Plano will consider venue-related taxes that would help fund the proposed Stars arena during elections Nov. 3.
Four residents spoke in opposition to the arena at the meeting. Eileen Shibata is a Plano resident who said the arena would take away from what attracts families to the city.
“I’m concerned the city is asking residents to vote on taxes without providing full transparency of the pros and cons and the cost of this project,” Shibata said. “Plano is a city focused on business and we’ve been successful because we’re able to offer stable housing, low crime, great schools, reasonable commutes and low taxes.”
The proposed taxes would apply to specific transactions and would not affect the current property tax rate for Plano residents, according to a city news release. The election also does not determine the future of the arena.
“We have many opportunities to say no in the future, but I think now is not the time to do that,” Kehr said. “I just feel like it’s a little early to say no to this.”
The background
Here are some of the tax options under consideration, per city documents:
Texas Local Government Code allows local municipalities to call a special election for residents to consider taxes for its revenue to go toward costs from the proposed venue.
One more thing
Plano City Council will discuss a potential citizen advisory committee with roughly 10-12 members representing local Homeowners Associations, or HOAs, in the Willow Bend area at their next meeting Aug. 24. City Manager Mark Israelson said the committee would provide input for the city throughout the project’s progress.
“We think that focusing in on the HOAs most closely impacted to the actual project site makes sense,” Israelson said.
